The United States announced that it needs to reconsider relations with Saudi Arabia, after it supported the decision of the "OPEC +" group to reduce oil production.
John Kirby, the strategic communications coordinator for the National Security Council at the White House, told CNN that the United States needs to reassess its relationship with the kingdom, including arms sales.
"I think the president has been very clear that this is a relationship that we have to continue to re-evaluate, that we need to be ready to reconsider, and certainly in light of the OPEC decision, I think this is his time," he added.
"We are willing to work with Congress to think about what that relationship should look like," Kirby said when asked about his reaction to Democrats' call for a freeze on arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
On Friday, oil prices jumped to their highest level in five weeks, two days after “OPEC +” cut its production by two million barrels per day, before falling back on Monday amid fears of a possible global recession.
This comes after Democratic lawmakers called for a freeze in relations with Riyadh, most notably Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations in the US Senate, who called for a freeze on cooperation with Saudi Arabia, including arms sales.
"I think it's time for a comprehensive reassessment of the U.S. alliance with Saudi Arabia," Senator Chris Murphy, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Middle East, told CNBC.
In the House of Representatives, Tom Malinowski, Sean Kasten, and Susan Wilde introduced legislation seeking to withdraw US forces from Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Rep. Robin Gallego suggested that the United States restore the Patriot missile defense systems deployed in Saudi Arabia, adding on Twitter: "If they prefer the Russians that much, they can use their very reliable military technology."
A few days ago, the "Washington Times" newspaper reported that a group of US Democratic representatives proposed a bill that would provide for the withdrawal of all forces from Saudi Arabia, in addition to the withdrawal of missile defense systems.
And the newspaper "Bloomberg" indicated that the United States should end the "special status" of the Kingdom in US foreign policy, and reduce the level of diplomatic relations with it.
As for US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, he said that the United States is studying a number of response measures, including Saudi Arabia, after the "OPEC +" decision to reduce oil production.
The United States criticized the decision, considering it "short-sighted", while the White House saw that the decision shows the bias of the "OPEC +" alliance to Russia.
Meanwhile, UAE's Mohamed bin Zayed meets Putin, highlighting the shifting of allliances and roles resulting from the war in Ukraine.
Speaking with Bin Zayed al-Nahyan, Putin said Russia aimed to create stability on energy markets and ensure that supply and consumption were balanced.
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